Bad Habits Start Early
by The Werewolf Mage
Summary: Baby Harry has such a cute name for his father. But can James break him of it?


Title: Bad Habits Start Early

Summary: Baby Harry has such a cute name for his father. But can James break him of it?

**Note: It's a bit hard to type with one thumb, but I'm going to try to get this up this week at least. Enjoy!**

Little Harry Potter sat on his mother's lap, watching his parents. They were seated at the kitchen table, and his father was trying to get him to say "Daddy".

But Harry's little vocal cords did not want to cooperate.

After about ten minutes of failed attempts, James headed over to the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of butterbeer. "He's never going to say it is he Lily?" he asked before taking a sip.

"Give him time James." she said softly, gingerly bouncing her son.

Harry looked at his father, then up to his mother. Then, clear as day, he said "Jaim."

James's butterbeer bottle hit the floor and shattered. "What did he just say?" he asked, turning slowly to face his wife and son.

"I think he said 'Jaim', darling." Lily said, trying to suppress her grin. "It's really cute, isn't it?"

"It is not!" James said. "He's supposed to call me "Daddy"." Crossing the room, he bent down to his son's level and said, "That's right. "Daddy". Not "Jaim."

"Jaim!" Harry giggled and squealed, not knowing how much fuss he was causing. "Jaim, Jaim, Jaim!"

James sighed softly, aware that Lily was stifling her giggles. "It's not cute." he said, though a tiny part of him agreed with her.

Harry began to whimper. He reached for his father's sleeve and whimpered, "Jaim?"

"Come here you." James took his son and carried him to the living room. He sat Harry down on the floor and pulled out his wand, flicking it and causing little multi-coloured bubbles to float through the air. Harry squealed and reached for the nearest, a small, golden bubble.

It popped the moment he touched it.

But that did not seem to matter. Letting out a long stream of baby talk, Harry crawled over to the nearest bubble that had lighted on the carpet. It was a large red one that also popped very quickly.

"Hoping to distract him?" Lily asked with a smile as she settled down on the floor next to her husband.

"Maybe." James said, the hint of a grin on his face.

But that grin soon vanished as Harry crawled towards him, having "killed" all the bubbles. "Jaim!" he said impatiently, tugging at his father's robes.

He wanted more bubbles.

"Jaim!" he whined, pulling his robes. With a sigh, James flicked his wand, sending more bubbles across the room.

"How can we break him of that?" James asked, scowling, as Harry crossed the room, trying his best to catch his bubbles.

"I think it's just a phase." Lily replied. "Let him break himself of it. He'll call you Daddy eventually."

"He doesn't call you "Illy" or something like that." James mumbled.

Lily giggled again. "That would be adorable. Why are you so bitter about this?"

"Because he's not supposed to call me that." James said with the slightest hint of a pout.

Lily smiled, placing her hand on his arm. "He's just a baby, James. Maybe he can't comprehend "Daddy". Maybe it's a bit much for him to say right now. But sooner or later he'll say it. And you'll forget all about this."

"Promise?" James asked with a tiny smile.

"I promise."

James leaned over, brushing a kiss to her cheek. Harry crawled over to his parents and crawled into his mother's lap, yawning widely.

"Is my little guy sleepy?" James asked.

Harry yawned again, sticking his thumb in his mouth. "Dabagooga muhgua Jaim?" Harry asked in baby speak.

James sighed but picked his son up and carried him to his crib. "Let's take a nap, OK?"

Harry sighed and snuggled closer to his father. A few minutes later, and he was sleeping peacefully in his crib. His parents stood over him, watching him rest.

"Still annoyed with him?" Lily asked, slipping her arm though his and resting her head on his shoulder.

"I suppose I will get over it. Like you said, it's probably just a phase. And Daddy should pop out of his mouth eventually."

Lily shut her eyes and smiled. "Good. I'm glad you're thinking that way."


End file.
